New campground opens at Bald Eagle State Park as reservations spike at state campgrounds

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State and local officials celebrated the opening of a new campground at Bald Eagle State Park in Centre County on Wednesday, which comes at a time where state campgrounds see a spike in reservations because of federal campground closures.

In March, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced they were closing campground reservations at Raystown Lake on a rolling basis because of a federal hiring freeze. Since then, many campers have moved to state campgrounds.

“Camping is up 30% already,” said Cindy Dunn, the secretary of the state’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. “This area here in Bald Eagle is up 55%.”

Since those federal campground closures, the Shapiro administration launched its “Still Open. Still Awesome” campaign to encourage outdoor recreation at state parks. Dunn said events like this are part of that effort.

Bill Kocher, the park operations manager at Bald Eagle State Park, said the new White Pine Loop will help accommodate campers displaced from federal sites.

“White Pine Loop is a 22-campsites, full hookup, pet-friendly campground with 50-amp service, ready for the bigger trailers,” Kocher said.

Kocher said a lot of parks don’t have the infrastructure to support newer RVs.

People have been camping at White Pine Loop since last year, but some parts weren’t finished until recently. Officials also said they wanted to celebrate Memorial Day and the unofficial start of summer with this opening ceremony.

The White Pine Loop is part of a $1.9 million state-funded project at Bald Eagle State Park. According to DCNR, the state has invested $120 million in infrastructure improvements to state parks and forests since 2023.